American Red Squirrel
Red squirrels are found in most regions of the US except the midwest which doesn’t have many trees and very little to no conifers. There are only small pockets of Red Squirrel population in the southeast, but they are found in the Blue Ridge and Smoky mountains in southern Appalachia. That being said, there are different kinds of Red Squirrels scattered throughout the USA. On the West coast the Douglas squirrel is found. It is a close cousin to the East coast American Red Squirrel.
Females only come into estrus one day and travel for the week leading up to mating to announce to the males that the time is near. They can breed with many males during that 24 hour cycle. They sometimes build several nests and move their 3-4 size litter amongst the different nests. The young take 4 months to grow to full size and will nurse for more than half that time.
Red Squirrels have a set territory and stash White Spruce cone seeds in middens. More than 50 % of their diet consists of these seeds which are harvested in August and September. The offspring are sometimes given a dowery of part of the mothers territory to start their own lives. They can breed at 1 year of age but sometimes wait until the 2nd year to do so. Their life expectancy is only 2.5 years and maximum age is 8 years.
Common predators are Lynx, Fox, Coyote, Bobcat, Marten, Wolf, Weasel, Great Horned Owl and Goshawks. To combat the young mortality rate, American Red Squirrels will breed at a young age and even breed with close relatives. Studies have determined that neither of these habits have a negative effect on the offspring and indeed help in keeping their population from decreasing. This image was taken on a trail through a Spruce Forest in Baxter SP in Maine.
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